Looking Back and Moving Forward with Pillars of Eternity

Explore the development journey of Pillars of Eternity in this 53-minute GDC Europe 2016 conference talk. Delve into Obsidian Entertainment's approach to modernizing classic PC RPGs while honoring their inspirations. Gain insights on retrogaming appeal, challenges in reviving retro styles, and post-mortem analyses of art, UI/UX, game mechanics, music, voice acting, narrative, and world-building. Learn about the importance of beta testing, early access, and post-launch support. Discover valuable lessons on balancing nostalgia with innovation in game development, and understand which elements to preserve and which to evolve when reimagining beloved gaming genres.

Intro
What's This All About?
The Appeal of Retrogaming
The Appeal - Nostalgia
The Appeal - Challenge
The Appeal - Wildcards!
The Deadly Dangers of Retro Revival
Soul is Elusive
Environment and Character Art
Pillars of Eternity Isometric
Art Post-Mortem
User Interface / User Experience
Item Sketches
UI/UX Post-Mortem
Game Mechanics Post-Mortem
Music and Voice Acting
Narrative and World Building
Companions
Narrative and WB Post-Mortem
Betas and Early Access
Beta Post-Mortem
Post-Launch Support - Incredibly Important!
What to Take, What to Leave